Assembly for and method of forming a decorative bow

ABSTRACT

A flexible ribbon is folded over itself to form a pair of end ribbon portions at opposite sides of a middle ribbon portion. Each ribbon portion has ribbon apertures. A stiff support is mounted on the middle ribbon portion and has support apertures that overlie the ribbon apertures in the middle ribbon portion. A drawstring is routed freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures, and pulled to move the middle ribbon portion from a flat state in which the ribbon portions lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions to form a loop bounding an open presentation area. An adornment is mounted on the support in the open presentation area, and is visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure generally relates to an assembly for, and a method of forming a decorative bow to be applied to a surface to be decorated and, more particularly, to a pull bow that may be formed in situ at the surface to be decorated.

It is generally known to provide a bow-forming assembly with a drawstring connected loosely to a ribbon at points lengthwise of the ribbon to enable a user to draw the ribbon into a decorative bow having multiple, arcuate loops by pulling on the drawstring. One advantage of this known assembly is that the ribbon and the drawstring can be packed flat, thereby greatly facilitating and reducing the costs of storage and transport of the ribbon assembly as compared to a pre-formed bow that is relatively bulky and needs to be packed in a crush-proof container. However, in practice, the thus-formed loops tend to vertically stack, one above another, thereby requiring the user to rotate and rearrange the individual loops about a vertical axis in order to achieve a rosette or pompon form. Apart from being time-consuming, this manipulation increases the risk of the bow becoming torn, damaged or soiled. Also, the loops tend to flatten over time and give the bow a plain appearance.

Accordingly, it would be desirable to form a decorative pull bow without multiple loops that need to be manipulated, and which maintains its decorative appearance over an extended time.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to identical or functionally similar elements throughout the separate views, together with the detailed description below, are incorporated in and form part of the specification, and serve to further illustrate embodiments of concepts that include the claimed invention, and explain various principles and advantages of those embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of one embodiment of an assembly for forming a decorative bow in accordance with this disclosure at an initial step of bow formation.

FIG. 2 is a rear elevational view of the assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the assembly of FIG. I at a subsequent step of bow formation.

FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of the assembly of FIG. 2 at a still later step of bow formation.

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of a decorative bow after being formed in accordance with the steps shown in FIGS. 14.

FIG. 6 is a rear elevational view of the bow of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a ribbon used in forming the bow of FIG. 5.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a drawstring used in forming the bow of FIG. 5.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a support used in forming the bow of FIG. 5.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a mounting pin for mounting the bow of FIG. 5 on a surface to be decorated.

FIG. 13 is a plan view of an adornment for adorning the bow of FIG. 5.

FIG. 14 is a perspective, exploded view of another embodiment of an assembly for forming a decorative bow in accordance with this disclosure

Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and locations of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.

The structural and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one feature of this disclosure, an assembly for forming a decorative bow comprises a flexible ribbon having a middle ribbon portion and a pair of end ribbon portions, each ribbon portion having ribbon apertures. The middle ribbon portion is movable from a flat state in which the ribbon portions lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions to form a loop bounding an open presentation area. A relatively stiff, support is mounted in the open presentation area and has support apertures overlying and aligned with the ribbon apertures of the middle ribbon portion. A drawstring runs freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures. When pulled, the drawstring moves the middle ribbon portion from the fiat state to, and holds the middle ribbon portion in, the curled state. An adornment is mounted on the support in the open presentation area and is visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.

In accordance with another feature of this disclosure, a method of forming a decorative bow is performed by folding a flexible ribbon over itself to form a pair of end ribbon portions at opposite sides of a middle ribbon portion, and by forming each ribbon portion with ribbon apertures. The method is further performed by mounting a relatively stiff support on the middle ribbon portion, by forming support apertures in the support, and by overlying and aligning the support apertures with the ribbon apertures in the middle ribbon portion. The method is still further performed by running a drawstring freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures, and by pulling the drawstring to move the middle ribbon portion from a flat state in which the ribbon portions lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions to form a loop bounding an open presentation area. The drawstring is then tied to hold the middle ribbon portion in the curled state. An adornment is mounted on the support in the open presentation area. The adornment is visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.

Referring now to the drawings, reference numeral 10 in FIGS. 1 and 2 identifies a generally planar, flexible ribbon that comprises a length of conventional decorative ribbon material, e.g., a conventional synthetic plastic having a satin-like fibrous texture, or a conventional fabric and/or polypropylene materials, and folding the ribbon 10 at a middle ribbon portion 13 to form two elongated, extended end ribbon portions 11 and 12 disposed in mutual parallelism in a common plane. FIG. 1 depicts the folded ribbon 10 from its front, and FIG. 2 depicts the folded ribbon 10 from its rear.

As best shown in the isolated view of FIG. 9, the extended end ribbon portion 11 is formed with a pair of ribbon apertures 11A, 11B that are mutually arranged along a first inclined line at a 45 degree angle relative to the elongation or length of the extended end ribbon portion 11, and the extended end ribbon portion 12 is formed with a pair of ribbon apertures 12A, 12B that are mutually arranged along a second inclined line at a 45 degree angle relative to the elongation or length of the extended end ribbon portion 12. The first and second inclined lines are generally perpendicular to each other. The middle ribbon portion 13 is formed with a pair of ribbon apertures 13A, 13B that are mutually collinearly arranged along a third horizontal line along the elongation or length of the middle ribbon portion 13.

A relatively stiff, support 14 is mounted on the middle ribbon portion 13. The support 14 is a polygonally shaped, generally planar, thin sheet or plate of a synthetic plastic material, e.g., a cellulose plastic material, which is relatively stiff compared to the extended ribbon portions 11 and 12. Preferably, the support 14 is die-cut from a colored or a transparent material. As best shown in the isolated view of FIG. 11, the support 14 has a narrow, tapered end 16 at which a pair of support apertures 14A, 14B are mutually collinearly arranged along a fourth horizontal line, and a wider, generally rectangular end 18. As shown in FIGS. 1-2, the support 14 is mounted on the middle ribbon portion 13 with the tapered end 16 pointing up and with the support aperture 14A overlying the ribbon aperture 13A, and with the support aperture 14B overlying the ribbon aperture 13B.

An elongated drawstring 15 is connected to the ribbon portions 11, 12 and 13 and to the support 14. The drawstring 15 may be formed of the same or a different material as the ribbon. 10. The drawstring 15 may have a circular cross-section, or be configured, as shown in the isolated view of FIG. 10, as a generally planar strip, just like the ribbon 10, but having a narrower width as compared to the ribbon 10 to enable the drawstring 15 to be routed freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures. More particularly, as best seen in FIG. 1, the drawstring 15 is successively routed through the ribbon aperture 11A, the ribbon aperture 12B, the overlying apertures 14A, 13A, the overlying apertures 14B, 13B, the ribbon aperture 12A, and the ribbon aperture 11B.

The ribbon 10, the support 14, and the drawstring 15 together comprise an assembly for forming one embodiment of a decorative bow 20 (see FIGS. 5-8). As best shown in FIG. 3, when the drawstring 15 is initially pulled in the direction of the arrows A, the extended end ribbon portions 11 and 12 cross over each other until the ribbon apertures 12B and 11A overlie and are aligned with each other, and concomitantly, the ribbon apertures 12A and 11B overlie and are aligned with each other. The overlying apertures 12B, 11A and the overlying apertures 12A, 11B are collinearly arranged along a horizontal line.

When the drawstring 15 is further pulled in the direction of the arrows A, as best shown in FIG. 4, the middle ribbon portion 13 and the support 14 are curled, folded over and inverted until the tapered end 16 of the support 14 points down, and the middle ribbon portion 13 contacts the crossed-over end ribbon portions 11 and 12. At this time, the overlying apertures 13A, 14A are moved to overlie, and be aligned with, the overlying apertures 12A, 11B, and, concomitantly, the overlying apertures 13B, 14B are moved to overlie, and be aligned with, the overlying apertures 12B, 11A. The free ends of the drawstring 15 are then tied into a knot 22 (see FIG. 6), thereby holding the middle ribbon portion 13 in its curled state.

The middle ribbon portion 13 is thus movable from a flat state (see FIGS. 1-2) in which all the ribbon portions 11, 12, 13 lie in a common plane, to a curled state (see FIGS. 5-6) in which the middle ribbon portion 13 is folded over and contacts the extended end ribbon portions 11, 12 to form a loop 24 bounding an open presentation area 26. The extended end ribbon portions 11, 12 are elongated and linearly diverge in a direction away from the middle ribbon portion 13 in the curled state.

The support 14 is mounted in the open presentation area 26, and an adornment 28 is mounted on the support 14 in the open presentation area 26. The adornment 28 is visible through the open presentation area 26 in the curled state. As best shown in the isolated view of FIG. 13, the adornment 28 is preferably constituted of a sheet material bearing any artwork or graphics 30, e.g., a thee, that is visible through the open presentation area 26 in the curled state. Advantageously, the adornment 28 is shown as being shaped as a heart, although any other shape, e.g., a star, is contemplated, as well as any other artwork or alphanumeric characters thereon.

The bow-forming assembly may be packed flat for storage and transport. In use, the ribbon 10 in the flat state illustrated in FIGS. 1-2 is converted into the decorative bow 20 by grasping the free ends of the drawstring 15 in one hand, and holding the ribbon 10 with the other hand. The drawstring 15 is then pulled outwardly. Once the bow 20 is formed, the drawstring 15 may be knotted at the knot 22, and the free ends of the drawstring 15 may be cut off. Alternatively, the drawstring 15 may be used for tying a parcel, and may thus secure the completed bow 20 in position around a parcel or the like to be decorated by the bow 20. Advantageously, a safety pin 32, as shown in isolation in FIG. 12, is connected to the ribbon 10, for pinning the bow 20 in the curled state on a surface to be decorated. For example, the surface may be a garment, in which case the bow 20 decorates the garment worn by a person. The bow 20 may alternatively be provided to the user with an adhesive-backed card having an aperture through which the free ends of the drawstring 15 are threaded. The adhesive-coated surface may normally be covered by a release paper which is removed after forming the bow 20 in order to assist in securing the completed bow to a parcel or the like.

Another embodiment of the bow-forming assembly is depicted in FIG. 14. As before, a flexible ribbon 10 has a middle ribbon portion 13 and a pair of end ribbon portions 11, 12, each ribbon portion 11, 12 and 13 having ribbon apertures 11A, 11B; 12A, 12B; and 13A,13B. As before, the middle ribbon portion 13 is movable from a flat state in which the ribbon portions 11, 12, and 13 lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion 13 is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions 11, 12 to form a loop bounding an open presentation area. As before, a relatively stiff, support 14 is mounted in the open presentation area and has support apertures 14A, 14B overlying and aligned with the ribbon apertures 13A, 13B of the middle ribbon portion 13. As before, a drawstring 15 runs freely through the support apertures 14A, 14B and the ribbon apertures 11A, 11B; 12A, 12B; and 13A,13B. When pulled, the drawstring 15 moves the middle ribbon portion 13 from the flat state to, and holds the middle ribbon portion 13 in, the curled state. An adornment (not shown in FIG. 14), but analogous to adornment 28, is mounted on the support 14 in the open presentation area and is visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.

In contrast to the bow-forming assembly of FIGS. 1-13, the end ribbon portions 11, 12 of the bow-forming assembly of FIG. 14 are shorter, lie underneath and are covered by the middle ribbon portion 13. In a variation, a pair of discrete, elongated ribbon extensions 34, 36 may be connected to the shorter end ribbon portions 11, 12 and diverge apart in a manner analogous to the extended end portions of the embodiment of FIGS. 1-13. The extensions 34, 36 or tails are preferably constituted of the same material as the end ribbon portions II, 12 and have extension apertures 34A, 34B; and 36A, 36B through which the drawstring 15 is routed. Thus, the completed bow of FIG. 14 may or may not have the extensions 34, 36.

In the foregoing specification, specific embodiments have been described. However, one of ordinary skill in the art appreciates that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims below. Accordingly, the specification and figures are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of present teachings.

The benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s) that may cause any benefit, advantage, or solution to occur or become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical, required, or essential features or elements of any or all the claims. The invention is defined solely by the appended claims including any amendments made during the pendency of this application and all equivalents of those claims as issued.

Moreover in this document, relational terms such as first and second, top and bottom, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “has,” “having,” “includes,” “including,” “contains,” “containing,” or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or arrangement that comprises, has, includes, contains a list of elements does not include only those elements, but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or arrangement. An element proceeded by “comprises . . . a,” “has . . . a,” “includes . . . a,” or “contains . . . a,” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or arrangement that comprises, has, includes, or contains the element. The terms “a” and “an” are defined as one or more unless explicitly stated otherwise herein. The terms “substantially,” “essentially,” “approximately,” “about,” or any other version thereof, are defined as being close to as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, and in one non-limiting embodiment the term is defined to be within 10%, in another embodiment within 5%, in another embodiment within 1%, and in another embodiment within 0.5%. The term “coupled” as used herein is defined as connected, although not necessarily directly and not necessarily mechanically. A device or structure that is “configured” in a certain way is configured in at least that way, but may also be configured in ways that are not listed.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in various embodiments for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separately claimed subject matter. 

1. An assembly for forming a decorative bow, comprising: a flexible ribbon including a middle ribbon portion and a pair of end ribbon portions, each ribbon portion having ribbon apertures, the middle ribbon portion being movable from a flat state in which the ribbon portions lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions to form a loop bounding an open presentation area; a relatively stiff, support mounted in the open presentation area and having support apertures overlying and aligned with the ribbon apertures of the middle ribbon portion; a drawstring running freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures, for moving the middle ribbon portion from the flat state to, and for holding the middle ribbon portion in, the curled state; and an adornment mounted on the support in the open presentation area and visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.
 2. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the end ribbon portions cross over each other in the curled state.
 3. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the end ribbon portions are elongated and diverge in a direction away from the middle ribbon portion.
 4. The assembly of claim 1, and a pair of elongated extensions connected to the end ribbon portions, and wherein the extensions diverge in a direction away from the middle ribbon portion.
 5. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the support is a generally planar plate having a tapered end that points up in the flat state, and is inverted and points down in the curled state.
 6. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the ribbon, the drawstring, the support and the adornment are generally planar and lie in the common plane in the flat state,
 7. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the adornment is constituted of a sheet material bearing graphics that is visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.
 8. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the adornment is shaped as a heart.
 9. The assembly of claim 1, and a pin connected to the ribbon, for pinning the bow in the curled state on a surface to be decorated.
 10. The assembly of claim 1, wherein the ribbon is a strip constituted of fabric and polypropylene materials.
 11. A method of forming a decorative bow, comprising: folding a flexible ribbon over itself to form a pair of end ribbon portions at opposite sides of a middle ribbon portion; forming each ribbon portion with ribbon apertures, mounting a relatively stiff support on the middle ribbon portion; forming support apertures in the support; overlying and aligning the support apertures with the ribbon apertures in the middle ribbon portion; running a drawstring freely through the support apertures and the ribbon apertures; pulling the drawstring to move the middle ribbon portion from a flat state in which the ribbon portions lie in a common plane, to a curled state in which the middle ribbon portion is folded over and contacts the end ribbon portions to form a loop bounding an open presentation area; tying the drawstring to hold the middle ribbon portion in the curled state; and mounting an adornment on the support in the open presentation area, the adornment being visible through the open presentation area in the curled state.
 12. The method of claim 11, and crossing the end ribbon portions over each other by pulling on the drawstring.
 13. The method of claim 11, and diverging the end ribbon portions in a direction away from the middle ribbon portion in the curled state.
 14. The method of claim 11, and connecting a pair of elongated extensions to the end ribbon portions, and diverging the extensions in a direction away from the middle ribbon portion in the curled state.
 15. The method of claim 11, and inverting the support upon movement from the flat state to the curled state by pulling on the drawstring.
 16. The method of claim 11, and pinning the bow in the curled state on a surface to be decorated. 